Letters From OC Weekly Readers

'Joseph McCarthy Popped the Lid to His Coffin With a Full-on Woody When He Heard That Statement'

Letters may be edited for clarity and length. E-mail to letters@ocweekly.com, or mail to Letters to the Editor, c/o OC Weekly, 2975 Red Hill Ave., Ste. 150, Costa Mesa, CA 92626. Or fax to (714) 550-5908.

CHIEF CONCERNSI have known Chief David Belardes [Matt Coker’s “Chief Belardes Makes His Stand,” Feb. 6] since the early ’80s when my wife and I moved to San Juan Capistrano. I supported Belardes during my 12 years on the City Council as a knowledgeable person with principles, integrity and ethics, though not perfect.

I have witnessed the confrontations with the Mission, Mechelle Lawrence-Adams (a former city employee) and Father Art Holquin, who needs to define humble.

I support Belardes to this day, and am willing to bet that the Mission et al. will lose should they persist in this lawsuit.

That was my first reaction just seeing the review blurb on the main page, but I see in your comment on the menu that you beat me to my remark!

Melissa, Tustin, via ocweekly.com

QUIERODROGASI couldn’t agree more on the legalization of “drugs” [Gustavo Arellano’s ¡Ask a Mexican! Feb. 6]. I mean, the sheer hypocrisy of seeing liquor stores all over the place dispensing the notorious elixir alcohol and then to turn around and tell everyone, “Just say no to drugs,” is ridiculous.

On top of that you have Mexico totally being destroyed from within just to satisfy the inelastic gringo demand for their ever-loving “high.”

USA=Spanish verb which means to use (syn. demand, exploit and abuse).

Marcelino, Downey, via ocweekly.com

WHITE TRASHFlushing condoms is damn-near impossible and quite irresponsible [Hey, You! Feb. 6]. Dispose of them in the trash and keep your LA River white fish out of the waste water.

Dag Stegis, Honolulu, via ocweekly.com

SOUTH SIDE SQUABBLEAs long as the Latino culture remains tolerant of gang participation at the family level, Sergio Farias and others should not be surprised when Latino communities are targeted by law enforcement [Daffodil J. Altan’s “South Side Story,” Jan. 30]. If a “friend of his brother’s taught him to be afraid of gangs early on,” just where the hell was Sergio’s father when it was time to hear such a message?

Socialists like Farias can wave their Che Guevara signs and shout racism all they want, but it won’t mean shit until Latinos start taking parenting seriously.

Anonymous, Santa Ana

If a person does not try to prove they are innocent, “that’s also an admission of guilt, if you ask me,” says Assistant DA John Anderson. Joseph McCarthy popped the lid to his coffin with a full-on-woody when he heard that statement.

George Orwell, Newport Beach

DROPPING BOMBSThat fucking interview rocked [Vickie Chang’s “A Skitch in Time,” Jan. 16]. You write well. I have skated for 31 years, and there is still a lot to learn about the history and how to skate! Good for you for filling a void in skate journalism that needed to be filled. You’re not Thrasher, but they have stuff they have to cover monthly and it’s not a lot of text history. I know Dale Smith, and after your article, I know him more. Good luck with things and thanks for the piece.

Darrel Delgado, via e-mail

Sorry, Skitch [Hitchcock]. You crossed the line when you bagged on the Z-Boys to establish your legacy. Jay Adams in particular defined the surf-influenced style from that era. As for the bunny hops, your toes grabbing the board for “gorilla grip” airs were not functional (nor applicable to surfing); that credit goes to an East Coaster, Alan “Ollie” Gelfand.

In a way, you did influence modern skateboarding as the Z-Boys, Badlanders and all of the OC skaters that followed moved as far away from the gymnastics hand stand (thumb brakes) deal as possible and into pools and pipes. Also, it was Duane Peters who did the first loop (sans tracks). The tracks were added so anybody (i.e., you and Tony Jetton) could do it consistently for the show. Props to your brother for the balls to shoot Signal Hill and other OC skaters mentioned in the article.